The moment the word "they" left his lips, Shirogane Miyuki was certain that this classmate, Uchiha, was one of his own!
Shirogane: "That's right. It's hard for mixed-bloods like us to fit in..."
Before long, the classroom finally quieted down as the homeroom teacher walked in.
"Everyone gather up. We're going to the school auditorium for the opening ceremony. From today on, you are high school students, so you'd better be on your best behavior."
The opening ceremony, to put it simply, was just the school leaders on stage saying some uninspiring words to motivate the students.
In any case, Uchiha Ryo hadn't been paying attention ever since entering the hall. However, the new student representative's speech caught his attention.
"I am this year's new student representative, Shinomiya Kaguya..."
[System has detected a capturable target]
[Capturable Target's Name: Shinomiya Kaguya]
[Current Shinomiya Kaguya Affinity: 0]
Shinomiya... Uchiha Ryo knew this surname. It belonged to one of the country's top financial conglomerates and represented the very pinnacle of the school's hierarchical pyramid.
This person... it's better to leave her alone for now. Is Shinomiya Kaguya easy to capture? For me, it's definitely very difficult.
First of all, I will not confess to any girl. Once I get into a relationship with someone, it becomes very hard to raise the affinity of other girls.
Therefore, raising Shinomiya Kaguya's affinity is tough. Moreover, the type of guy she likes is one whose talent or academic ability surpasses her own, and who has fierce-looking eyes.
Surpassing her abilities to get her attention is simple. As for the fierce-looking eyes... should I just activate my Sharingan in front of her? That would probably scare her.
Besides, with the Shinomiya family's power, once her affinity gets high, they probably wouldn't allow me to raise the affinity of other girls... All in all, I'll put her on the back burner for now and avoid provoking her for the time being.
The boring opening ceremony ended, and the new students returned to their respective classrooms. Uchiha sat quietly by the window, attending class while pondering how to raise affinity levels.
As expected of a prestigious school, the students were already plunged into an intense study mode on the very first day.
Shuchiin holds a school-wide monthly exam, and the rankings are posted in the hallway below the main school building.
By the way, Uchiha Ryo's entrance exam score was third in the entire school, because he felt it was just a simple entrance exam and there was no need to aim for a perfect score.
The first place was naturally that ice queen, Shinomiya Kaguya. Second place was her relative who was often tormented, Shijo Maki. As for a certain fierce-eyed Shirogane, he seemed to be in ninth place. As an external student who managed to get into Shuchiin, this was already a good result.
During lunchtime, Ryo stood up to go to the cafeteria and noticed Shirogane Miyuki awkwardly reaching out his hand, only to slowly put it back down.
As for Shirogane Miyuki's sudden increase in affinity, I can probably guess it's due to the shared misery of being external students.
Unfortunately for you, you're just a little lamb for me to fleece for affinity points.
...Oh, well. It can't be helped, I have a gentle little brother. Besides, if Auntie Fujiwara asks if I made any new friends when I get back, it'll be hard to answer.
"Are you going to eat?"
Uchiha Ryo didn't leave immediately, but instead turned his head to look at Shirogane Miyuki.
"Ah, I was just about to go eat too. Let's go then."
[Shirogane Miyuki's affinity has increased—G-Points +20]
Something's not right. With this rate of increase, I still suspect he might be gay!
"Let's go then, to the cafeteria."
Uchiha Ryo pointed towards the cafeteria, but saw Shirogane Miyuki's expression freeze, after which he imperceptibly clenched his jaw. "Yes, let's go to the cafeteria."
He's hesitating? It's just the cafeteria, why?
"...Actually, I'm not that hungry for lunch. Let's just grab some bread from the school store near the gate."
"Ahaha, me too, actually," Shirogane Miyuki said with a genuine smile.
[Shirogane Miyuki's affinity has increased—G-Points +10]
As expected. The Shirogane family's financial problems are quite serious. Shirogane Miyuki has to work part-time most of the time to support the family. After all, supporting two children at a prestigious school like Shuchiin is tough. Shirogane Miyuki has clearly given most of his living expenses to his little sister.
And the Shuchiin cafeteria is not cheap for the Shirogane family.
"Uchiha-kun, you're an external student like me, right? What made you decide to apply here? To be honest, my old man submitted a special student application without telling me, really..."
Uchiha Ryo chuckled. "I felt I could gain a lot at Shuchiin, that's all."
The two bought half-priced yakisoba bread at the school store and found a shady spot on the edge of the sports field to sit and eat.
"Speaking of which, the surname Uchiha sounds so familiar... Ah, I remember now. I think I saw it in a manga!"
Shirogane Miyuki looked at Uchiha Ryo curiously. "Have you read it, Uchiha-kun? I think it started serializing in Weekly Jump about two years ago. Teacher Naruto's 'Naruto'!"
Uchiha Ryo nodded. "Yes, that manga is very popular, but it's just a coincidence that my name is the same."
That was a lie!
As a transmigrator with a system, it wasn't hard to learn drawing techniques and recreate "Naruto." Speaking of which, he had to thank Takashi for the few G-Points he had contributed.
"I see... Hey, Uchiha-kun, can we be considered friends now?"
Shirogane Miyuki asked uncertainly.
"...."
The Shirogane Miyuki from the first year of high school is quite different from the student council president in my memory. He's insecure, slightly cynical, and has already experienced the cruelty of society while other students are enjoying their youth.
"Ah, there you are!"
Looking up, a silver-haired girl in a middle school uniform came jogging over. Her azure eyes were quite similar to Shirogane Miyuki's.
"Honestly, I couldn't find you in the cafeteria, so I guessed you'd be out here eating this kind of bread."
"Um... Kei."
The girl called Kei puffed up her cheeks. "Anyway, Onii-chan, come to the cafeteria with me. Stop eating this un-nutritious bread out here."
Shirogane Miyuki was very embarrassed and glanced apologetically at Uchiha Ryo.
"Sorry, this is my little sister. Please excuse her."
Only then did Shirogane Kei notice Uchiha Ryo next to her brother. "Ah! Are you my brother's friend? It's nice to meet you. I never thought my brother would actually make a friend on the first day of school."
"Hey, how pathetic do you think I am?"
Uchiha Ryo sized up the little silver-haired sister, who could be described with the single word "cute," as she offered him a friendly smile.
"Hello, senpai. I'm Shirogane Kei from the middle school division. My brother is pretty hopeless, but I'll leave him in your care."
[System has detected a capturable target]
[Capturable Target's Name: Shirogane Kei]
[Current Shirogane Kei Affinity: 15]
Uchiha Ryo returned the smile. "Yes, I'm Uchiha Ryo, from the same class as Shirogane. Shirogane-kun is my friend. As for eating bread out here, it was my idea. My apologies."
Sorry, Shirogane Miyuki. The moment I saw your little sister, I decided I was definitely going to be your friend!